May 21, 2024
By Gabriel Campos
Staff Writer
Artificial intelligence is impacting many fields, and music is no exception. People can now create realistic covers of songs and even generate entirely new songs using AI.
The Artists’ Rights Alliance, a non-profit organization that works to defend and protect artists, is actively fighting back against the use of AI in music. On April 1, it issued an open letter signed by over 200 music artists, including J Balvin, Billie Eilish and Nicki Minaj, declaring the irresponsible use of AI to be an assault on creativity.
Senior Olivia Oliveira, who is a section leader in LHS’ band and co-president of the chorale, said she shares the concerns cited in the Artists’ Rights Alliance letter.
“While AI can be very interesting, I do see it as more harmful than beneficial to artists and true creativity, authenticity and originality,” Oliveira said.
She said AI-generated music steals from artists and profits from their talent.
“It can also create a false depiction of them to the public, leaving people unsure of what music is truly theirs,” Oliveira said.
A recent example of AI’s use in music includes rapper and singer Drake, who used an AI imitation of the late rapper Tupac Shakur’s voice in his song, “Taylor Made Freestyle,” which was released on April 19 and is no longer available on streaming platforms.
“In regard to production of sound, I feel AI can do that, but music is so much more than sounds.”
Shakur’s estate responded by sending Drake a cease and desist letter calling his use of Shakur’s voice “a blatant abuse of the legacy of one of the greatest hip-hop artists of all time.”
Similarly, in November 2023, an artist named FlowGPT used AI to make a song featuring the voices of music artists Bad Bunny, Justin Bieber and Daddy Yankee. Bad Bunny discouraged fans from listening to the AI-generated song and used an expletive to describe the song.
That same month, the Beatles released the song “Now and Then,” which was created with AI that restored singer John Lennon’s unusable vocals 42 years after his death.
Choir director Ms. Wise said “Now and Then” reflects AI’s significance in music production.
“This [song] was controversial because he’s deceased, and why should we be making music involving his voice?” Wise said.
She said musicians should not feel threatened by AI.
“In regard to production of sound, I feel AI can do that, but music is so much more than sounds,” Wise said. “A good analogy would be like saying that a robot who does chores around the house can replace your mother.”
Wise said, although AI is a tool for music production, it is not an assault on creativity because it cannot be truly creative.
“This is one area of AI music production that is not touchable. Although sounds could be replicated, musicians and live music [are] so much more,” Wise said. “Think about going to a concert…. You can hear recordings of those musicians at any time or any place, but is it the same as attending a live concert? I don’t think so.”
English teacher Mr. Belmont, who is also LHS’ technology specialist, said making music should be a human-centered process.
“AI could be a useful tool for brainstorming and coming up with ideas, but I don’t believe AI should be used to completely generate music,” Belmont said.
Similar to Wise, Belmont said he does not believe AI poses a major threat to music artists. He said although generative AI tools are getting better at creating music, most music fans care about more than just interesting instrumentation and harmonies.
“A personal connection and experience with the musician is also highly valued,” Belmont said. “Knowing that a person went through an experience and expressed it through an art form is really what it’s all about.”
